New Braptor border to border run with 500 miles of offroad fun

[RallyRaptors]

Following up on a quick intro, I wanted to share some thoughts and trail reviews from a recent 5,000 mile (ish) trip where I managed to sneak in close to 500 miles offroad. I don't count gravel county roads as truly off-road so rounding down .

I picked up a new Bronco Raptor in Georgia, paid a quick visit so a friend in Savannah Georgia and started to head out west! First stop was back home in Tennessee to grab mountain bikes. Thank you to @buzzcutt2 for showing the way with the Kuat Pivot! I'll toss some road trip observations in a reply but I imagine the trail reports, off roadeo tips, and stats will be more interesting so here they are.

Trails and roads - Thank you to a ranger in Moab who recommended some extra routes...

1) Kokopelli from Grand Junction to Moab - if you're new to the dirt, want a change in scenery, or get tired of traffic on I70 this is the way.
We didn't do the full trail due to time and having bikes on the back (rack and Bronco were fine, but crazy dust and reduced rear clearance .
Tip - if you're solo, don't have a winch and skids, and are short on time plan to bypass Rose Hill
Links and maps
https://www.blm.gov/visit/kokopellis-trail
https://www.onxmaps.com/offroad/trails/us/utah/kokopelli-trail-onion-creek-to-andy-mesa

2) Utah Raptor State Park, Willow Springs Road, Tower Arch Trail, and Arches NP - mellow trails but there are some fun spots on Tower Arch trail, awesome views, and a chance to see some dinosaur tracks if that is of interest to the kiddos.
Tip - Grab a National Park Pass for the year. This opens up some nice routes, especially in Canyonlands (below).
Links and maps
https://www.discovermoab.com/4-wheeling/
https://www.onxmaps.com/offroad/trails/us/utah/willow-springs-trail-and-dinosaur-tracks

3) Canyonlands NP - Shafer Trail, Potash Road, and White Rim (White Rim and for next time) - mellow but awesome views! You could make an entire trip out of a visit to Canyonlands and it will be less crowded than Arches.
Tip - plan ahead to get a White Rim permit (we didn't but didn't have time) and make sure your passengers are good with heights (for the switchbacks).
Links and maps
https://www.nps.gov/cany/planyourvisit/driving.htm
https://www.nps.gov/thingstodo/experience-the-shafer-trail.htm
https://www.nps.gov/cany/planyourvisit/upload/maze2022updated_508forweb.pdf
https://www.onxmaps.com/offroad/trails/us/utah/potash-road-shafer-switchbacks

4) Trails around St George - there are way too many places here. I could go back for weeks (ideally not in June and July).
I barely scratched the surface here - visited Coral Dune State Park, Moccasin Mountain, and some roads on the way into Grand Canyon National Park.
Tip - plan to spend more time with St George as a base!
Links and Maps
https://stateparks.utah.gov/parks/c...cQFnoECGsQAQ&usg=AOvVaw3KmAy2wishMhQ7QqRoRX_j

5) Grand Canyon - Point Sublime - mellow trail but you get to see and hang out at the Grand Canyon!
So this is a drive from St George (around two hours) and a mellow trail. Don't hit this if yoiu want to go pre-run as there will probably be a few people who are new to the dirt. There aren't any obstacles, but you get out of the summer heat down below and you get to see the Grand Canyon!
Tip - Pack a nice lunch, hit this early in the day, and visit Coral Dunes or Moccasin Mountain on the way out.

LInks and Maps
https://funtreks.com/off-road-trails/point-sublime/

Bonus jaunt into California - Mojave National Park and Kelso Dunes (next time for the Dunes)
I ran out of time so didn't make it out to Kelso dunes, but in order to make it a true East to West run I did swing from Nevada into California to pay a visit to Mojave National Park.

Off Roadeo - awesome - do it!
I'll share more on this later but I think others have covered this pretty well. I'll just add a few summer of '24 updates and stats.

Trip Stats
Miles - 5,000
Off road miles - 500
MPG - 15.8 (hand calc was 15.75)
Issues - zero

Best comment from passengers, people on the trail, and a motorcycle club
Bad@$$ - uttered by someone in every group including from a guy stuck next to us at a light as we stared the trip (thank you sir, you set the tone).
Holly $#!^ - every passenger), and my personal favorite...
More Baja Mode - my son's new favorite phrase when we're in teh Bronco

And a few quick pictures

Willow Springs Road to Eye of the Whale

Potash Road after Shafers

Moccasin Mountain

And the start of a fun day at Mt Potosi

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[Ford Motor Company]

Great photos, thanks for sharing!

 

[Baja Bronco]

Looks like you had a great time! Thanks for sharing.

 

[RallyRaptors]

@Ford Motor Company and @Baja Bronco - most welcome and thank you!

 

[vrtical]

what parts of TN are you in?

 

[Scoop]

Nice trip! Good summary of trails for my bucket list!

 

[broncofirsteditionuk]

Looks like an epic trip!

 

[rws]

Following up on a quick intro, I wanted to share some thoughts and trail reviews from a recent 5,000 mile (ish) trip where I managed to sneak in close to 500 miles offroad. I don't count gravel county roads as truly off-road so rounding down .

I picked up a new Bronco Raptor in Georgia, paid a quick visit so a friend in Savannah Georgia and started to head out west! First stop was back home in Tennessee to grab mountain bikes. Thank you to @buzzcutt2 for showing the way with the Kuat Pivot! I'll toss some road trip observations in a reply but I imagine the trail reports, off roadeo tips, and stats will be more interesting so here they are.

Trails and roads - Thank you to a ranger in Moab who recommended some extra routes...

1) Kokopelli from Grand Junction to Moab - if you're new to the dirt, want a change in scenery, or get tired of traffic on I70 this is the way.
We didn't do the full trail due to time and having bikes on the back (rack and Bronco were fine, but crazy dust and reduced rear clearance .
Tip - if you're solo, don't have a winch and skids, and are short on time plan to bypass Rose Hill
Links and maps
https://www.blm.gov/visit/kokopellis-trail
https://www.onxmaps.com/offroad/trails/us/utah/kokopelli-trail-onion-creek-to-andy-mesa

2) Utah Raptor State Park, Willow Springs Road, Tower Arch Trail, and Arches NP - mellow trails but there are some fun spots on Tower Arch trail, awesome views, and a chance to see some dinosaur tracks if that is of interest to the kiddos.
Tip - Grab a National Park Pass for the year. This opens up some nice routes, especially in Canyonlands (below).
Links and maps
https://www.discovermoab.com/4-wheeling/
https://www.onxmaps.com/offroad/trails/us/utah/willow-springs-trail-and-dinosaur-tracks

3) Canyonlands NP - Shafer Trail, Potash Road, and White Rim (White Rim and for next time) - mellow but awesome views! You could make an entire trip out of a visit to Canyonlands and it will be less crowded than Arches.
Tip - plan ahead to get a White Rim permit (we didn't but didn't have time) and make sure your passengers are good with heights (for the switchbacks).
Links and maps
https://www.nps.gov/cany/planyourvisit/driving.htm
https://www.nps.gov/thingstodo/experience-the-shafer-trail.htm
https://www.nps.gov/cany/planyourvisit/upload/maze2022updated_508forweb.pdf
https://www.onxmaps.com/offroad/trails/us/utah/potash-road-shafer-switchbacks

4) Trails around St George - there are way too many places here. I could go back for weeks (ideally not in June and July).
I barely scratched the surface here - visited Coral Dune State Park, Moccasin Mountain, and some roads on the way into Grand Canyon National Park.
Tip - plan to spend more time with St George as a base!
Links and Maps
https://stateparks.utah.gov/parks/c...cQFnoECGsQAQ&usg=AOvVaw3KmAy2wishMhQ7QqRoRX_j

5) Grand Canyon - Point Sublime - mellow trail but you get to see and hang out at the Grand Canyon!
So this is a drive from St George (around two hours) and a mellow trail. Don't hit this if yoiu want to go pre-run as there will probably be a few people who are new to the dirt. There aren't any obstacles, but you get out of the summer heat down below and you get to see the Grand Canyon!
Tip - Pack a nice lunch, hit this early in the day, and visit Coral Dunes or Moccasin Mountain on the way out.

LInks and Maps
https://funtreks.com/off-road-trails/point-sublime/

Bonus jaunt into California - Mojave National Park and Kelso Dunes (next time for the Dunes)
I ran out of time so didn't make it out to Kelso dunes, but in order to make it a true East to West run I did swing from Nevada into California to pay a visit to Mojave National Park.

Off Roadeo - awesome - do it!
I'll share more on this later but I think others have covered this pretty well. I'll just add a few summer of '24 updates and stats.

Trip Stats
Miles - 5,000
Off road miles - 500
MPG - 15.8 (hand calc was 15.75)
Issues - zero

Best comment from passengers, people on the trail, and a motorcycle club
Bad@$$ - uttered by someone in every group including from a guy stuck next to us at a light as we stared the trip (thank you sir, you set the tone).
Holly $#!^ - every passenger), and my personal favorite...
More Baja Mode - my son's new favorite phrase when we're in teh Bronco

And a few quick pictures

Willow Springs Road to Eye of the Whale

Potash Road after Shafers

Moccasin Mountain

And the start of a fun day at Mt Potosi

Thank you for sharing this amazing trip! I'm now adding these places to my plans for trips out west (from Georgia) over the next year or so. Great tips!! And I'm one of those "not fond of heights" people, so I'll be cautiously enjoying. NOTE: Million Dollar Highway trip for us last year was both amazing and "terrifying" at the same time.

 

[RallyRaptors]

what parts of TN are you in?

West Tennessee / mid-south. Closer to the Ozarks than the Smokies… Haven’t wheeled in state in ages but always up for recommendations!

 

[RallyRaptors]

Thank you for sharing this amazing trip! I'm now adding these places to my plans for trips out west (from Georgia) over the next year or so. Great tips!! And I'm one of those "not fond of heights" people, so I'll be cautiously enjoying. NOTE: Million Dollar Highway trip for us last year was both amazing and "terrifying" at the same time.

You will have an awesome time! You can break up the drive out west or just bomb through and slow down in Colorado .

If heights are a thing, the only place I’d really think twice about from my list would be Shaffers. So instead of going into the park and doing switchbacks down the cliff just come in via Potash Road, and when you hit the switchbacks, you can either call it a day or take your time (know a few people who are better going up than down).

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